I believe that natural places have the power to heal our dis-ease with life and to restore our perspective on what really matters. Places are why I started this blog. Recently I found myself in a strange, disorienting place: Washington DC. And rather than walking a pine-needle path, I was wearing out my shoes on the … Continue reading Mr. Cook Goes to Washington
Tag: places and systems
Three Things Anyone–including you–Can Do to Help the Environment
David BrowerSomedays I feel like the task is too great, the struggle too demanding. A report about new--or decades old--toxins in the air and water; the count of 180 invasive species in the Great Lakes; the latest disturbing data on a warming planet; or just one more patch of litter along my favorite river; all … Continue reading Three Things Anyone–including you–Can Do to Help the Environment
Biking Through Nature, Past and Present: The Natchez Trace
Like plants and animals which adapt to their environment over time, how we travel has also evolved in response to changing circumstances. I recently learned this first-hand on a spring bike trip in Mississippi.The Natchez Trace is an ancient route that angles northeast from the lower Mississippi River to the rich farmlands of central … Continue reading Biking Through Nature, Past and Present: The Natchez Trace
The Sandhill Cranes of Nebraska
Some places have a signature animal species that defines a particular natural environment. For me, they include the alligators of the Okefenokee, the wolves of Isle Royale, and the Kirtland's Warbler of the Au Sable Plains. Ever since youthful trips across the Great Plains in the spring, I have also associated the Sandhill Cranes with … Continue reading The Sandhill Cranes of Nebraska
Five Truths Found in Nature
On September 11 this year, I got up early, walked to the beach and watched a great black-backed gull in the surf. After breakfast, I got on a bicycle and rode off into a fog so wet that I needed raingear. Later, the sun prevailed and I spent a glorious day immersed in nature, fully aware … Continue reading Five Truths Found in Nature
Paying it Forward with the Kirtland’s Warbler
When it comes to nature, how can we pay it forward? You know the concept: someone does a good deed for you, or pays off your debt, and you reciprocate by extending your generosity and good will to the next person in line. But hasn't nature also done us many a good deed? And don't … Continue reading Paying it Forward with the Kirtland’s Warbler
"The Once and Future Great Lakes Country"
Land conservancies rightly seek to protect and preserve undisturbed natural places: the forests, marshes, shorelines, and all those pieces of nature that represent a time before human settlement. "If only," we say as we look at an old growth stand of white pine and imagine what the North Woods was before logging, or as we … Continue reading "The Once and Future Great Lakes Country"
The Haunted Forest Preserve
Saving the Great Lakes will require new ways of thinking about, and working on, conservation. We need to think of the largest freshwater ecosystem as whole; we need to overcome geopolitical boundaries; and we need to remember, and apply, the history of the special places we love. These lessons, and more, were brought home to … Continue reading The Haunted Forest Preserve
Winter Like it Used to Be
"In my day, the winters were so much more . . . snowy, or colder, or predictable" seems to be a frequent complaint I hear from mid-Michigan residents over the age of 30 (climate data shows that anyone under the age of 27 has never experienced a colder than average month, anytime of year). I … Continue reading Winter Like it Used to Be
Great River, Great Lakes
The Confluence When I started this quest and this blog, I wanted to add more places to my set of outdoor achievements (you can read my first blog post here). I look at my shelves and certain books I keep as touchstones to learnings and life moments. How too to keep the experience of a day in … Continue reading Great River, Great Lakes
Walks with Tom 